Charity

From Halachipedia
  1. There’s a positive mitzvah to give Tzedaka (charity) to the poor people of Israel. This great mitzvah brings the ultimate redemption closer. Hashem is merciful with those who are merciful on others and one won’t become poor because one’s charity. One should think about how difficult it is to part with one’s money because really that money isn’t one’s own rather it’s a loan from Hashem in order to do His will. [1]

General guidelines

  1. There is no bracha for the mitzvah of Tzedaka. See the footnote for different reasons suggested. [2]

Who should give?

  1. Even a poor person who has some money of his own that’s not needed for business should give Tzedaka even if it’s only a small amount. [3]
  2. Many opinions hold that if one decided to give charity mentally without expressing it verbally, one should fulfill that decision. [4]

How much to give

  1. The community should supply a poor person who asks in private the amount he is lacking with respect to his previous standard of living. However, to a poor person who is knocking on doors the community only needs to give him money for 2 meals and a place to stay. [5]
  2. It is better to give a lot of poor people a little money, then to give one poor person a lot of money. [6]

Maaser Kesafim

  1. There is a praiseworthy minhag to give a tenth of one’s income in charity every year. Before accepting this minhag one should stipulate that one will be able to use the money set aside for Maaser could be used for Mitzvot. [7]
  2. If one has financial difficulty one should stipulate from the beginning that one will only give Maaser after having subtracted all of one’s expenses from one’s incomes. [8]

Taking Tzedaka

  1. A person should endeavor to refrain from taking charity and endure some hardship in order not to take charity. Chazal state that it is preferable to make your Shabbat meal like a weekday rather than take from charity. (See the Kavod Shabbat page for the practical laws about how a poor person should fulfill Kavod Shabbat.) Anyone who presses himself to live with difficulty without taking charity is blessed to one day have enough money to support others. Nonetheless, one who needs to take from charity in order to live and doesn't take is sinning.[9]
  2. A person who doesn't need to take charity and nonetheless deceives people and takes is sinning and is cursed by chazal to really become poor.[10]

Sources

  1. ↑ Rambam Sefer HaMitzvot (Mitzvah Aseh #195), Kitzur S”A 34:1
  2. ↑ The Sh"t HaRashba 1:18 explains that there's no bracha for the mitzvah of tzadaka because it depends on the reciever and since it is possible that he receiver will not accept the money, chazal didn't establish a bracha for the mitzvah. The Aruch HaShulchan YD 240:2 explains that the reason there is no bracha for Tzadaka is because both Jews and non-Jews do this deed. Since the primary difference between a Jew and non-Jew who take such actions is the intent, that the Jew does it in order to fulfill a mitzvah and the non-Jew does it because its moral, for such an action one may not say "Asher Kideshanu" - we were commanded in this specific action.
  3. ↑ Kitzur S”A 34:2
  4. ↑ There's two opinions in Shulchan Aruch C”M 212:8 if a mental thought to make something hekdesh or tzedaka is binding. The Rama C”M 212:8 and Y"D 258:13 writes that the halacha is that it is binding. Yachava Daat 6:52 has a doubt about the opinion of Shulchan Aruch. On the one hand, since there are two opinions in S”A, it would seem that the halacha is like the second one, who in this case is lenient. But, on the other hand, the second opinion is quoted as yesh mi she'omer in singular, whereas the first is quoted in plural yesh omrim. Yalkut Yosef y"d 247-259:12 just quotes S"A but doesn't give a definitive ruling. In one article of DailyHalacha by Rabbi Mansour, he writes that we're lenient according to the opinion of the Daat Esh who says that everyone agrees that its not binding if the whole event was mental but there's a dispute if you said you'd give but didn't specify. However, the Yachava Daat 6:52 argues that this opinion is not implied by S"A. However, in another article Rabbi Mansour writes that we're machmir that it is binding according to the Or Letzion.
  5. ↑ Kitzur S”A 34:3
  6. ↑ Rambam Peirush Hamishnayot Avot 3:15
  7. ↑ Yalkut Yosef (Kitzur S”A YD 247:10)
  8. ↑ Yalkut Yosef (Kitzur S”A YD 247:10)
  9. ↑ Kitzur S"A 34:15-16
  10. ↑ Kitzur S"A 34:16
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